Golden Death
by Stargazing BasketCase
Summary: It’s never simple, is it? Everything seems perfect, his arms around her, and then it just all goes wrong… TenRose. Sequel to 'Breath of Life'.
1. Prologue: Tearing

Title: **Golden Death**

Rating: T

Summary: It's never simple, is it? Everything seems perfect, his arms around her, and then it just all goes wrong… Ten/Rose.

Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I do not own Doctor Who (the BBC does) and I have made no money from this little fic. Pity, I could use the cash…

Right, hello again. This is a sequel to my other fic 'Breath of Life', which I decided to continue. Hang on, that's sorta obvious… The continuation bit at least. Ah well. Anyway. I don't think you have to have read that one to make sense of this one, but it might be a good idea I suppose.

And to the readers of 'Breath of Life', some of you might be able to get a clue to the ideas in this one from the title… Heehee. I enjoy being evil.

But I'll try not to disappoint. Sequels screw up rather often, so I'll try not too. Enjoy!

Golden Death

_Prologue - Tearing_

The coffee was finished now, the patterned mug dispatched amidst a pile of rumpled sheets on the floor of their bedroom. There was the smell of sweat and joy in that room; the scent lingering after the occupants had left. The clothes that had been strewn across the floor had been gathered up and pulled on roughly, his tie simply draped around his neck, her jacket tied around her waist with a loose knot.

The corridors still rang with happy, racing footsteps. He had chased her around the TARDIS, jacket flapping out behind him, silly grin on his face. She had led him in a merry dance through passageways that none of them had thought existed, before he had caught up with her in the control room.

His arms had shot around her waist, catching her. She had fallen back against him with a giggle and a flirtatious pout. He had raised his dark eyebrows at the working of her mind, and then lowered his lips to hers, tracing flesh over flesh.

They had made their own silent symphony, the TARDIS the orchestra in the accompaniment; the kissing couple the double woodwind soloists.

They had been too absorbed in the simple touch of skin on skin to notice when the orchestra began to fall apart, when the symphony fell into discordant clashes. The soloists had carried on while their backing crumbled.

They only noticed the death of the music when she was roughly torn out of his arms, icy blue light encasing her in a bubble of stifling brilliance. The gold in her eyes had flared up in distress, her hands pressing to the blueness, beating at her prison. Her lips had formed his name in a soundless scream, and he had screamed hers in return as blood red radiance pulled him down.

The music was extinguished, and the TARDIS hung in space. Empty. Cold. Torn apart.

The Oncoming Storm; red as blood; down to hell.

The Bad Wolf; blue as the moon; up to heaven.

>>>>>>>>>

But Hell was not always what it seemed.

And Heaven wasn't populated by angels.

>>>>>>>>>


	2. Chapter 1: Breaking

Golden Death

_1 - Breaking_

"Rose Tyler?"

The voice was calm, musical. Her name sounded like the ripples on the surface of crystal clear water; the syllables spilling from those lips as if they ran down a slope of satin.

"Rose Tyler? Are you alright?"

Her eyelids drifted open, and she was immediately assaulted by a mass of screaming white and blue, the soothing colours worming into her brain and setting her optic nerves ablaze. A soft moan of pain escaped her lips, and she screwed her eyes shut once more.

"I apologise Rose Tyler. The light is sometimes startling to those newly accepted. You will become used to it."

_What? Accepted? Accepted into _what?

Her eyes flew open and she focused on the angelic face floating above her; hanging in the air with nothing to support it. A delicate smile graced the being's features. "Welcome Rose Tyler," it greeted.

She blinked. Once, twice. And then…

"Where's the Doctor?"

The face took on a frown, a miniscule hint of disapproval. "Who is the Doctor?"

It was lying. She could just tell. A little tickle in the back of her mind that told her this being knew exactly where the Doctor was.

With a jerk she pushed herself up into a sitting position, her gold-flecked eyes suddenly hard as she stared at the being before her. "Where is the Doctor!"

A sympathetic smile. "He left you. Do you not remember?"

"What?" Her eyes went wide, part shock, part astonishment. "He wouldn't!"

"I am sorry Rose Tyler." Sympathy. Genuine? She didn't think so. "It must be hard to accept."

No. It was lying to her. The tickle became an insistent itch.

"You're lying. The Doctor would never leave me."

The sympathetic smile remained on the angel's face, but its eyes were no longer soft and accepting. "You should have believed. It would have been better for you. Much better." A sigh, more mental than audible. "You will have to be persuaded in other ways."

A frown crossed her forehead.

And then she was screaming.

>>>>>>>>>

"Doctor?"

The room was a dull red; the crimson glow coming from the walls and the ceiling and the floor. It was oddly pleasant on the eyes, and the Doctor sighed, stretching out his arm, reaching for her…

And coming into contact with only empty air.

He sat bolt upright. "Rose!"

There was a ghostly red figure sat crouched before him. "I'm sorry Doctor. We were too late to reach her."

The Doctor's dark eyes darted around the room, searching, scanning, filing away. "Where is Rose?" he bit off fiercely.

There was genuine sorrow on the red being's face. "I'm sorry. She was taken."

"Taken by who?" He was angry now, so angry; every word infused with rage and fear. He needed Rose back. _Now. _

"Heaven."

The Doctor blinked. _That _threw him. "Heaven?"

"Yes." The red being cocked its head to one side. "You are in Hell."

"Ah." He looked around, more for appearance than anything else. "I thought it would be more…" He searched for the right word.

The being sighed. "Firey?"

"Yeah."

"I get that a lot."

"Sorry." The Doctor shook himself mentally. "Rose."

The being nodded, melancholy once more. "Yes."

"Who took her? You said Heaven, but…"

"Not Heaven exactly," his companion supplied. "The inhabitants of Heaven." It shook its head. "And they are _not _all they're cracked up to be."

The Doctor raised his eyebrow subconsciously at the almost-human turn of phrase. "What d'you mean?" he asked. "And what do they want Rose for?"

"Oh, they don't want your friend" it replied. "They want the being that is newly awakened within her body."

"What?" He frowned. "Why?"

"They search for power," the being answered calmly. "Your friend carries possibly one of the strongest entities ever created within her."

"Stop talking about her like that," the Doctor suddenly snapped.

The being jumped slightly. "Like what?"

"Like Rose is just some vessel for this power," he bit off, suddenly illogically angry. "She is far more. _Far _more. Do you understand me!"

The being nodded mutely.

The Doctor jumped up, incapable of sitting still any longer. His feet carried him in concentric circles around the red being and the bed he'd woken up on. "And anyway," he rambled, "it can't be separated from Rose. She is it; it is her." He paused for a second, a slightly dreamy smile tracing his lips.

"It is true; the power cannot be separated from Rose Tyler," the being acquiesced. Its head was bowed, facing away from the Doctor. "But she can be turned."

The Doctor's head shot up. "What?"

"They can torment her mind until she believes whatever they tell her." The being looked up at the Time Lord. "She may be powerful, but she is still human," it whispered.

_yes. human, and vulnerable. _A memory. His own mind talking to him.

"Human and vulnerable." The words fell from his lips in a whisper.

"Yes. Vulnerable because of what she feels. They will take advantage of her feelings, her passions."

"Their greatest strength but yet their greatest weakness." His voice was a murmur, barely audible.

"It is what they do; the Angels." The red being stood, facing the stricken Doctor. "They take power, no matter who they must rip apart to do so." It placed its hand on the Time Lord's shoulder in comfort; its red hand a stark contrast to the brown pinstripe.

"How?" The Doctor's voice nearly cracked. What only seemed like yesterday, she drowned. Today her mind was to be torn to pieces.

He had been right. He shouldn't have let this happen; shouldn't have let her love him. They would use her love for him to corrupt her beautiful soul, and he wouldn't be able to catch her as she slipped and fell.

The red being frowned. "How what?"

"How do I save her?" Determination. Blazing determination. _Save her. _

He might have been foolish to allow her to get this close, but he had, and she had wound her way into his heart. This time he couldn't afford to run away. He couldn't sacrifice her; he wouldn't sacrifice her.

He was the Doctor, and he would save her.

"You cannot." The red being was sorrowful. "It is impossible. I can only offer you a place where you cannot be reached by her screams." Its fingers fell away from the Doctor's shoulder, its face betraying pain of its own. "I am sorry," it whispered.

At those words, something inside him broke with a crash loud enough to stun him into silence. _No… _

He was the Doctor, and he would _save her. _

Or at least, that was the plan.

>>>>>>>>>


	3. Chapter 2: Needing

Disclaimer etc.: see Prologue.

Heya guys, me again.

Right, I forgot to put this in the last two chapters, so just to let you know, this is set basically the same day that 'Breath of Life' ends (but you might have figured that out from the coffee references in the Prologue… my friends did).

Thank you to people who dropped me a review. You are all very amazing! Enjoy!

Golden Death

_2 - Needing_

"Rose Tyler?"

She hurt all over; her body and her mind were one big raw nerve. She didn't think she could summon the strength to open her eyes, and she didn't even try. There was a harsh blue and white glow blazing onto her closed eyelids, and that just made her hurt all the more.

"Rose Tyler? Are you alright?"

Her mind refused to form coherent thoughts, and she just rolled away from the source of the musical voice, but it followed her; it wouldn't leave her alone. Her subconscious just wanted to sleep; she just wanted it to go away. Her sleeping mind just wanted _him; _he would make it all alright.

But her conscious thoughts registered none of her subconscious desires, and as the calm voice swirled around her, all that Rose Marion Tyler could think was:

_Ow. _

_>>>>>>>>>_

The sonic screwdriver buzzed in his hand, the blue bulb on the tip flashing intermittently. There was a curse in a long-dead language that had millennia still to live, and the Doctor whacked his palm against the malfunctioning device. Another string of violent alien curses spilled from his lips as he was forced to shove the screwdriver back into his jacket pocket.

The red being just watched him, semi-motionless.

The Doctor suddenly whirled on it. "Why did you bring me here?" he demanded, vicious anger and frustration twisting scarlet wire around his voice. "Why? You could have left me on the TARDIS; then I would have been able to go after Rose on my own! But _no, _you had to bring me here. You couldn't just leave me!"

"If I had left you on your ship then they would have taken you too," the being said, its voice calm. "And her fall would have been all the faster."

"But at least I would have been with her!" the Doctor almost-yelled. "At least I could have done something _useful!_ At least I could have _tried _to save her!" He slammed his palm into the wall angrily, before slumping down. "I have to get to her," he whispered softly.

"I am sorry, but it is impossible," the red being consoled. "There is nothing you can do."

The Doctor was silent for a second. "Why?" he asked finally, softly, calmly. "Why is it forbidden?"

The being frowned. "I never said 'forbidden'," it protested. "I said 'impossible'. Nothing forb—"

"But the impossible is only impossible because something forbids it from being possible," the Doctor interrupted, his eyes closed, his circular logic making perfect sense. He opened his eyes and stared over at the red being, his dark eyes unreadable. "So my question stands. _Why is it forbidden?_"

"I—"

"And I wouldn't advise lying to me," the Doctor added, his voice icily calm, _scarily_ calm. A flicker of something lashed across his gaze; a brush of blackness. "It's been a _hard_ few days." His lips twitched up. A dangerous smile; a crazed grin. "I might get a little cranky."

There was silence for an eternal instant; the red being transfixed by the underlying currents of _something _in the Doctor's intense stare. "Answer me," the Time Lord ordered dangerously.

"It is forbidden in order to keep the balance," the red being whispered, answering on autopilot, as if in a trance.

"What balance?" the Doctor questioned, rising slowly from his slumped position. "What balance is worth Rose's life?"

"_The _balance," came the reply. "The eternal balance of the universe." The being's voice was becoming lethargic; the Doctor's influence draining it. "It is worth anything and everything to keep the scales in order."

"There was balance before." The Doctor watched the being as he spoke. "Rose and I. We balanced each other."

"But there was no equality between us," the being murmured.

" 'Us'?"

"Heaven. Hell."

"Ah. 'Us'."

"Hell held to much power; the Angels were jealous."

" 'Held'? Not anymore?"

A lazy shake of the being's head. "No more. The power was stripped from us; this place became a holding pen for those who could help the helpless."

The Doctor's head rose slightly. "Like me."

"Yes. And now the balance must be maintained." A pause. "Rose Tyler is broken in Heaven and the Doctor must be restrained in Hell. It is what must be."

"That isn't balance." The Doctor looked up to the ceiling of the crimson-tinted room. The red being blinked and swayed as its regained full control of its mind once more. "That's control. Domination for them. Subservience for you."

"It is how it must be," the red being answered hoarsely.

There was silence as the Doctor's gaze roved back and forth over the vaulted roof. Then he looked back down at his companion. "Who was it?" he asked softly.

The being looked up and his gaze linked with the Doctor's. As the Time Lord watched, it remembered, and pain skipped onto its features. "My…" Its voice broke for a second; memories flooding back. "My son," it completed in a whisper. "They took him. Took him so long ago."

"I need your help," the Doctor said softly.

The being didn't answer; too absorbed in its own misery.

The Doctor straightened up, stepping away from the wall. Slowly he extended his arm, his long fingers stretching towards his new acquaintance. The atmosphere in the room was electric; charged passions and agonising memories blasting into the air. The red being watched the Time Lord numbly; immobile.

"Help me," the Doctor whispered.

_>>>>>>>>>_

The voices were back again; insidious whisperings inside her head.

_He left you. He feels nothing for you. _Poison, seeping through her mind. _Give in. Give in to us. _

_Shut up! Shut up! He loves me! _

Twisted laughter. _Foolish child. He is a Time Lord; the last of a majestic people. And you think he would love _you? More laughing, more voices joining in the hilarity. _Arrogant weakling. _

_Shut up! Just leave me alone! _She was nearly crying. All the doubts that she had entertained mere days before were being forced back onto her, and she hated it. She hated _them_. Why were they doing this to her?

_Why hasn't he come for you then? If he loves you so much, where is he? _Snickering in the background. _Your knight in shining armour. Where is your Doctor now? _

It was his name that fortified her. His name uttered from unseen lips that bolstered her defences and kept her whole; kept her sane.

_Shut UP! _She retreated into herself; wrapping herself around memories of him and her. He would come for her; he would save her.

But still the voices didn't give in. _Come now little girl, accept it. You are _nothing _to him. Just someone to be used and then cast away. _

_NO! SHUT UP! _

Giggles. Insane giggles.

_LEAVE ME ALONE! _

Mocking voices, imitating her impassioned screams.

_What do you want? _Her voice was softening. _Why are you doing this? _She was weakening now, her hastily thrown up barriers crumbling under the weight of her despair. They sensed it; they attacked.

_We want you! _a plethora of voices screamed back at her. _We want your power! We want your mind! We want it all! Everything, burning and breaking inside a whirlwind of blood and death. You will give it to us! _

_Get away from me! _

_Give it to us! _

The dam broke; the pain poured in.

Screams of the dying tore free from her lips as she writhed in emptiness. She couldn't form words, couldn't form his name.

_Give it to us! _

_I don't know what you want! _she screamed back piteously.

_Give it to us! Give it to us! _

_Give you _what!

_YOU! _

It hurt so much. It hurt too much.

She needed him. But he wasn't here. _Doctor… _

She couldn't help it.

She gave in.

But she didn't fall.

_>>>>>>>>>_


	4. Chapter 3: Joining

Disclaimer etc.: see Prologue.

Sorry for the delay. I have no good excuse. I am a slacker. –grins–

I'm eagerly awaiting Saturday's episode, but don't want Rose to go… Silly Billie Piper.

Oh, and I can't seem to be able to put equals signs in, so sorry if it's a little unclear later on...

Anyway. Thanks to those who reviewed last chapter, and I hope this one doesn't disappoint. Enjoy!

Golden Death

_3 - Joining_

**She gave in. **

_He felt it. _

_>>>>>>>>>_

With a violent gasp the Doctor crumpled to his knees in the endless corridor, a hand rising to press against his throat. A golden starburst blasted into his mind and he suppressed a moan of pain and fear.

_God no please no Rose!_

The red being stopped and turned, a crease furrowing its crimson forehead. "Doctor?" Its tone held genuine concern.

The Doctor didn't notice the little things in his companion's expression, in its voice. All he was concerned about was…

"Rose," the Time Lord croaked.

The being stepped closer, just one step, halting and painful. Dread flooded its voice, eyes and stance. The Doctor barely noticed. The being's tongue flicked out and licked its lips in worry. "Is she…?"

_>>>>>>>>>_

**But she didn't fall. **

_And he knew that too. _

_>>>>>>>>>_

"No." His head snapped up. _"No." _

She was strong; she would hold until he could get to her. Until he could save her. He just had to find her before they snapped her mind in two.

The Doctor pushed himself to his feet, ignoring or not noticing the red being's outstretched hand. "She isn't," he bit off, his lips forming the words in short bursts.

The red being's hand was dropped to its side and it cocked its head to one side, studying the silently raging Time Lord. "How can you be so sure?" it asked, voice barely above an intimate whisper.

He spared his companion a glance, and let a bare hint of a smile flick across his face. "Because she's Rose."

"That's not an explanation," the red being rebuked.

The trace of a ghost of a smile vanished and nostalgic and pain slid across the Time Lord's young face. "No," he whispered in a daze. "It's an excuse."

_>>>>>>>>>_

She watched them closely as they moved in slow circles around her, limbs fluttering like birds' wings in a bizarre dance. Murmurs filled the 'room', echoing again and again and again until fading away amidst the cacophony of other whispered notions.

_What am I doing? _she wondered lethargically.

Her mind was fogged; unable to remember anything. A tiny spark of golden light shone through the mist, but its light was faint and wavering. She vaguely recalled something cold and hot and rough and smooth all at once being tipped gently down her throat; of cool hands holding her still as she choked and twisted and struggled.

_Where am I? _her hazy mind put forward.

As she watched from her position on the floor one of them glided over to a just-appeared tray that hovered in midair. Its back shifted so that all she could see was gilded fabric, and her gaze wandered away, ignoring the sudden rasp of metal on metal and the sudden increase and focus in the whispers.

Confusion. _Who am I? _

She couldn't remember.

She felt hands on her arms, gently lifting her up and up and up. She smiled happily, kicking her legs in the air like a naïve toddler. A breathless giggle escaped her lips as she stared up, her gaze latching onto a bright light that shone from the ceiling, bathing the room in watery radiance that spun crystal daggers into her eyes. Her fingers snatched at shadows, wanting to touch, to feel.

She only wanted to feel, to experience.

Something cool slid under her skin with a sharp pinprick and she gasped in childish pain. The hands released her, and she was falling, down and down and down to the ground. The moment she made contact with the floor she began to shake violently, her limbs dancing a violent tango against the wishes of her protesting mind.

And suddenly the fog was gone, and she remembered in diamond-sharp clarity.

Rose gasped. Shock and pain. "Doctor!"

One of them crouched down before her, and somewhere inside herself she wondered at the fact that it had a body. "He is not here Rose Tyler," it informed her with clinical detachment. "We cannot allow him to reach you."

Her lips formed letters, words, sentences, speeches, but nothing came out.

"And now Rose Tyler," the being continued, reaching out to stroke an insubstantial pale finger down her soft cheek, flushed by fear, "it is time for you to let loose the Wolf. Just as you promised my dear."

His finger reversed direction, dragging a torturous trail up her satin-smooth flesh. Her hands were shaking and she just wanted to get away, to feel the Doctor's arms around her, holding her safe.

The pad of its fingertip brushed over the skin of her temple, and the world shifted a step on the colour spectrum.

Everything blazed, the colours magnified and exacerbated and reflected around inside her fragile skull. Reds danced like fire; greens twisted with shades of jealously; blues shone with the light of the moon. And over it all there was a faint sprinkling of gold.

She was burning; her head was burning.

She couldn't hold this power; it was like another entity inside her that was eternally bound to her heart and soul. It hurt so much to use this energy, but at the same time it made her feel complete. Whole.

_Come Rose Tyler. Unleash the Wolf. _

There were whispers in her mind, whispers that corrupted the eggshell-thin skin of her psyche. They wanted something; they wanted her to show them the gold in her heart.

_Unleash the Wolf upon the universe!_

Her eyes flickered up, the gold swirled within her brown irises glowing, giving her gaze an iridescent sheen. "Don't…" she hissed out, pure power contained with her throaty growl.

_Unleash it! Show us! Let it out! _

She fought it; fought her own desires and passions. Embracing the power would mean it wouldn't hurt anymore and embracing it was exactly what her nature sang to her to do.

She fought it, but she didn't want to. And the gold knew that.

The Bad Wolf whispered to her, a calm voice, so much like his that it shook her. She could trust herself, and the Wolf was her. _Show them, _it advised her. _They want a show? Give them a show. _

She smiled at the Wolf's thoughts intermingled with her own. Her glowing gaze slid over to the being that still touched her temple. A smile twisted her lips. "Unleash it?" she questioned.

What could almost be described as a triumphant smile slid across its features. "Yes," it whispered. "Let it out. _Show us._"

She leaned forward, forcing it to move back with her. "You asked for it," she whispered almost-maliciously, her breath gusting over his phantom skin.

Gold filigree traced through her voice as the two halves of her spirit wound into each other, merging, blending. Becoming one. Her mouth curved into an exquisite smile as power and energy thrummed through her veins.

With a grin on her lips she extended one hand, sparks crackling along her arm to dance on her fingertips with fairy-like alacrity. A single thought caused the fairies to coalesce together into a blast of fire; a snap of golden lightning crackled out from her fingers.

A twitch of her mind and the lightning raced around the room, crowning each of them with a halo of thorny light. She held it there, the entirely of the place ablaze with light and energy and power and the Wolf.

She looked back down at the being before her. The brown of her eyes was gone completely, replaced by blazing gold. "You wanted a show," she murmured, power jolting through her entire being. "And I've only just begun."

For some reason, it seemed to smile. Mockingly. Cockily.

_Don't smile, _she thought hardly.

_Let's show them who they're messing with, _the Wolf whispered inside her head. _Let's show them how good we are. _

_For him, _Rose thought hazily, almost dreamily.

There was a pause, and then the Bad Wolf would have smiled. _For the Doctor. _

_For my Doctor, _Rose murmured, and her fingers contracted into a fist. The power in her went wild.

But the smile didn't leave the being's face.

_>>>>>>>>>_

It's simple maths really; two factors combining to become one. No graphs or formulae or diagrams, just _x _plus _y _equals _z_. Elementary mathematics.

For one calculation, one pertinent to the travellers within the TARDIS, the _x _and the _y _stand for this:

_x _– Rose Marion Tyler

_y _– The Bad Wolf

Write this information out in an equation (substituting numbers and all that), it comes to this:

_Rose Marion Tyler _+ _The Bad Wolf _equals...

But equals what?

No one knows; it has no name. No name, no shape, no form, no voice. It is Power, pure and simple and uncomplicated.

Write the sum again.

_Rose Marion Tyler _+ _The Bad Wolf _equals _Power. Pure Power. _

And for some, power is everything. Not Rose, all she wants is her Doctor's arms around her in their little corner of the Universe. She wants the Doctor and the TARDIS and the simplicity of her life, the life that would be hard for some but is simple and easy for her.

But now she has power, power that is beyond anything in the Universe. Beyond even her lover's comprehension. And that is saying something.

All she really wants in her life is simplicity.

And for the Angels, the corruption of power, and those who _hold _the power, is oh-so-simple.

_>>>>>>>>>_


	5. Chapter 4: Burning

Disclaimer etc.: see Prologue.

Right. Who saw 'Doomsday'? (Everyone probably.) I have one thing to say on the subject.

_NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! _

Ahem. Sorry.

Enjoy!

Golden Death

_4 - Burning_

They burned around her, faces melting, bodies dripping into pools of unidentifiable sludge. Gold fire swam around her, highlighting her hair in twists of iridescent beauty. The screams of those she sacrificed to herself echoed through eternity, giving some life, or death, to the cold of the spacelanes.

And through it all, all the death and all the terrible, gut-wrenching screams, she laughed.

As the sinisterly smiling Angel before her melted away into stink and nothing else, she laughed hysterically. It was just funny, for some reason known only to her.

It was only after the Angels around her had crashed and burned that she felt something different; something _wrong._ The Bad Wolf and Rose Tyler twitched in confusion inside their shared mind. _What is that? _their shared thoughts asked; their immense knowledge flummoxed.

Then it came; a freezing probe that seared deep into their brain, ripping away their defences and tearing into the gold that spun in a never-ending spiral. It gorged itself on the power, dragging the brilliance away from the combined strength of the Wolf and Rose.

Something giggled at them as they were left stripped and vulnerable.

_What are you? _they howled back.

_**we are the angels.** _Another giggle. **_thank you! thank you! _**

_For what? _

_**for the power to destroy him of course!**_

Terror, flooding through both of them, the Wolf influenced by Rose's potent emotions. Pain and fear. _Destroy who? _

_**the doctor! and when he falls, we shall rule over all! **_

_But we _killed_ you! _

_**we are more than flesh and blood! we are the angels! we are more powerful than** **you can comprehend! you **_**cannot_ kill us! _**

_You cannot kill him! _

**_and what do you plan to do about it? we hold you, you are our prisoner. what can _you _do? _**

_You _can't!

_**watch us. **_

The gold faded away, leaving the room a vicious charnel house. Rose's form was left upright in the centre, naked in mind and body, clothes burned away by the fire that had burned out Heaven.

"Time to find your Doctor." Rose Tyler's lips moved, but it was neither her nor the Wolf that spoke. The Angels dredged the pair's joined memories, and then snickered. " 'Everything has its time, and everything dies'," they quoted.

The conjoined Rose/Wolf screamed out to the Doctor inside their mind; telling him to run, to flee, to hide. He couldn't hear.

Ecstatic giggles. "It's his time now!"

>>>>>>>>>

The earth shook beneath the Doctor's feet as his world was yanked out from under him. _"Rose!" _Her name slipped free from his lips as he reeled against the wall, stricken.

The red being only just caught him before he fell. "Doctor? Is it Rose Tyler?" It shook him. "What is it?"

The Time Lord gasped, desperately trying to drag oxygen into his lungs, and failing miserably. There was something reaching for him, dragging at him, tearing at him with razor-sharp teeth. He was slipping towards it.

"Doctor!"

His eyes rolled up in his head and he sagged against his crimson companion, unconscious.

>>>>>>>>>

Darkness.

That was all there was around him. Blackness that ate at him, threatening to pull him down and down until he was but a shell of who he used to be. For a split-second that seemed to go on into eternity voices screamed at him; the voices that yowled inside his mind, heralding the insanity.

And then they were silenced, and there was nothing but quiet.

He shivered.

"Rose?" he called into the emptiness around him, his voice echoing into the far reaches of this place; this place that held the darkness of his own mind. "Rose! Can you hear me!"

Gold speckles drifted towards him as if summoned by his impassioned voice. A smile twitched at his lips. "Rose?" he asked again.

"She is here." The echoing voices drifted into his senses and he whirled around in the emptiness, trying to see where they came from.

"Where?"

"Here." The speckles swirled towards a point before him, coalescing into a vague outline of an unmistakeable form; the gold stark against the black. It was as though an artist had sketched her roughly on a dark canvas with gold pencil, simple lines picking out her body and face in glowing streaks. She watched him through golden eyes, the irises solid rings of gold, black shining through in the centre. "Doctor," she whispered almost-provocatively.

He gasped with joy. "Rose!"

The outline's full lips curved in a cold smile; eyes evaluating him harshly. "Not quite, Time Lord."

He was blasted backwards and sent spiralling off into the darkness.

>>>>>>>>>

_DOCTOR! _

Rose and the Wolf struggled together, but they couldn't dig the Angels' claws out of their spirit. _Leave him! _they screamed. _Don't hurt him! Please! _

**_why not? _**the Angels cackled, cruel in their insanity.

_PLEASE! Leave him! _

_**no! **_

They screamed and screamed, but it didn't matter. The Angels were inside them, corrupting the power, and as the power was corrupted, so were they.

They were corrupted, and suddenly the Wolf was gone, and Rose Tyler was all alone.

**_join us, _**the Angels whispered to her. **_the doctor made you hurt, he _abandoned _you. make him pay. make him scream. don't deceive yourself. you hate him. _**

She struggled on. _No! I love him! _

**_you _hate _him! don't be so naïve! _**

_I LOVE HIM! Leave him _alone!

**_alright then. maybe you do love him. but does he love you? _**

_What? Of course he does! _

**_he _told _you he does. is he telling you the truth? _**

_Why would he lie? _

**_why _wouldn't_ he lie? he likes to travel with an entourage. sarah-jane told you as much. maybe he thought you would leave if he didn't tell you that he loved you. maybe he lied to you just to keep you with him. _**A giggle. **_it worked as well. _**

_You're lying. _But there was doubt in her thoughts.

The voices became suddenly sympathetic and slightly condescending. **_why would we lie to you? you are one of us. we do not lie to family._**

Anger. Incredible anger. _I am not one of you! I would never be one of you! _

Smugness. **_you may want to revise that statement. you _are _one of us. _**

_No! _

_**yes. you can talk to us. that proves that you are. **_

_You've possessed me! _She was floundering now, because she could feel the voices were telling the truth. But she wouldn't believe it. _You're just using me! I'm human! I love him! Leave me alone! _

But it was too late. She burned alone.

**_rose tyler. _**A smile inside her mind. **_welcome. _**

>>>>>>>>>

The Doctor's eyes shot open. _Rose! _

"Doctor!" the red being greeted, a relieved smile gracing its scarlet features. "You scared me!"

The Time Lord didn't reply.

"Doctor?"

"They've taken Rose," he bit off in reply, every word laced with anger and pain and frustration and overwhelming fear.

The smile was immediately wiped away, replaced by an expression of genuine sorrow. "Oh Doctor," the being murmured, "I'm so sorry."

_Help us Doctor. Please. _

He blinked. "What?"

"What what?" his companion asked.

"Did you just hear a voice?" the Time Lord asked.

"No!"

_Doctor! Listen!_

"Again!"

"Doctor, are you sure you are okay?" The red being's voice was worried.

The Doctor shushed it softly. "Who are you?" he asked the voice, his head inclined slightly upwards towards the roof.

_The Wolf. _

"The _Bad_ Wolf?"

_Yes. _

"But, I thought you were Rose?"

_I am. In a manner of speaking. _

"D'you mind explaining?"

_Rose and I are two halves of a whole. _

"Ah. Right." He frowned. "Where is she then?"

_As you said. She's been taken by the Angels. _

"But you're here."

_They had to get rid of me in order to fully encase her mind, in order to full control her. I was ripped away and cast out. _

"That can't be good."

_It isn't. She is incomplete. She will die soon if I cannot return to her. And I will too. _

Claws of ice grabbed at his heart. "Die?"

Confirmation. _Die. _

"Where is she?"

_The ashes of Heaven. _

" 'Ashes'?"

_It burned. We burned it. _

He couldn't help but smile. "She's more powerful than she knows, isn't she?"

_We are the most powerful being in existence. _Fear. Pain. Nostalgia. _When joined, that is. Now we are half the strength of what we were. _

"How do I get to her?"

_We. You will not go alone. _

He smiled despite the situation. "Okay then. How do _we _get to her?"

_The TARDIS. _

The Doctor sighed, his quirky smile vanishing. "She's gone though," he replied, sadness in his tone.

He could feel the Wolf's disapproval. _The TARDIS is alive and well. A little battered, but fine._

He frowned in amazement. "Where?"

_Hell. _

The Doctor grinned. He could suddenly see brilliance where before had been all shadows. "Let's go find her then!"

He felt the Wolf's agreement and amusement.

"Who?" his scarlet acquaintance asked finally, frustration evident in its tone and face. "Who are we looking for? Who were you talking to? _What's going on!_"

The Doctor grinned and patted it on the shoulder. "We're looking for the TARDIS, that's my ship; I was talking to the Bad Wolf and as to what's going on… We're going to go save Rose Tyler!"

The red being eyed him. "You're crackers," it observed.

The Time Lord took a little bow, still grinning like a loon. "Oh, I know." He turned away and marched down the corridor, the red being trailing in his wake, muttering to itself.

Within a second the smile faded from his lips, replaced by a mask of grim determination.

_Hold on Rose. I'm coming. _

>>>>>>>>>


	6. Chapter 5: Jolting

Disclaimer etc.: see Prologue.

I'm not entirely pleased with this chapter, but I hope it's not too crappy.

Thank you to people who have reviewed, I love you all. Enjoy!

Golden Death

_5 - Jolting_

They found the TARDIS nestled away in a little corner of Hell, the blue of her panels stark against the walls' gentle crimson glow. The Doctor grinned, feeling his feet settle onto the path that led back to 'normality'.

"Hey girl," he greeted, running his palm down the wooden panels. "Did you miss me?"

He felt her psychic rumble of joy at his return and the smile spread wider. "Take that as a yes then." He slapped the wood playfully, joyful, desperately. "Good to be back."

"Oh that's just great," the red being mumbled beside him, unaware of the tension within the Time Lord. "First he talks to thin air. Now he's talking to a box. Wha-hey."

The Doctor rummaged in his pocket and pulled out his TARDIS key. He brandished it before his red friend. "This is not just any old box," he lectured. "This is _my _box." He turned to the TARDIS, and then swung back again with a grin. "And it's not just a box."

"Oh yeah?"

"It's a _blue _box."

The red being rolled its eyes. "Oh boy."

>>>>>>>>>

Her footsteps were light along the tarmacked road; almost-dancing through the urban estate. She was right there, so close she could touch the milling crowds, but so far away that it hurt to imagine the distances. The vision was almost palpable, she could almost believe that she was actually there, actually stepping through the Powell Estate, the place she had once called home.

But she wasn't.

And if she didn't keep fighting, she never would be again. And that was a fact that was in sharp relief within her psyche.

She was disjointed, out of synchronisation with her limbs and body. The Angels controlled her corporeal form and had cast her off to her prison within the still-aflame Heaven.

Rose Tyler burned with it, but she waited. Waited for him.

She leaned against the invisible bars, trying to block out the tantalising images that the Angels were projecting into her mind. Her eyelids slid shut, and salty tears welled in the corners of her eyes.

"Doctor…" she whispered slowly, softly. "Doctor, please… _Help me._"

>>>>>>>>>

And somehow, somewhere, he heard.

He screwed his eyes shut; for one double pulse of his hearts. Two. Three.

_You can hear her, _the Wolf whispered in his ear.

_Yes. _

He turned and ran to the console. "I know where her body is," he said automatically, explaining to those he guided.

"Her body isn't with her mind," the red being said softly; half statement, half question.

"Yes." Levers, switches, dials. "We need her body. And then we can get her mind."

_Where is she then? _The Wolf chipped in its bit.

One big lever, yanked up. The TARDIS shook and they spun recklessly through the Vortex. "They took her body home."

>>>>>>>>>

Her eyes flew open, unseeing the pyre around her.

The Angels guided her body through the back streets of 21st century London, through her home. They touched things, climbed things, held things. And now they were heading somewhere.

**_maybe a little shock is required to fully integrate you into us, _**they mused softly. It started her that she could hear them.

"Shock?" she murmured in her prison a million years away. She shivered as she saw through her eyes, out-of-control.

**_maybe a little death by your hand. just a little. just so there is no going back. something to jolt you into us. _**

Rose wasn't stupid. Horror, and pain. And fear. "You can't mean…"

_**yes we can. **_

>>>>>>>>>

"Home? But why?" The red being moved up and leant against the console beside the Doctor.

His eyes were focused. "Rose will be fighting them," he murmured, more for his own benefit than his companion's. "They'll try to shock her into submission; it's the only way for them to keep total control of her."

"Shock her?"

_How? _The Wolf again.

The Doctor bit his lip gently, thinking, his brain working overtime to frantically figure it out. His fingers tapped a crazy tattoo on the console, shivering, shaking. Scared beyond belief.

A moment passed.

His fingers froze.

"Oh no…" he murmured, disbelieving. "They _wouldn't…_"

"Doctor?"

_Doctor? _

"Jackie!"

"Who?"

The Doctor slammed the heels of his hands into his eyes. "Jackie Tyler," he explained tersely. _"Rose's mother." _

"Oh."

_But what are they going to do to Jackie? _

"They're gonna kill her." He grabbed the TARDIS's phone, trusting her to dial it for him. "And I can't let that happen."

>>>>>>>>>

Her body stood in front of her mother's front door, and Rose screamed inside her cell. "Mum! No! Mum run!"

They cackled. **_she's not going to hear you rose tyler. you know that. _**

"Shut up!" she screamed. _"Mum!" _

Her hand was raised to knock. **_must be polite, _**the Angels murmured. **_before killing her, of course. _**

>>>>>>>>>

The phone rang in the flat, at the same time as a knock sounded at the door. Jackie Tyler sighed, and deliberated which to answer first.

The phone kept ringing, and the insistent buzzing was started to get on her nerves.

"I'll be right there!" she called to the door, and picked up the handset. "Hello?" she quizzed down the line.

"_Hello,_" an Asian-accented voice started in a fast-paced jabber, "_could I interest you in—_"

Jackie hung up the phone with the faceless person still talking. " 'Could I interest you in double glazing?'," she mimicked, slightly viciously. "No! And if you call again, I'll give you a piece of my mind!"

She moved for the door. "And if this is some bloody salesman…!"

>>>>>>>>>

The Doctor cursed violently at the engaged tone that buzzed down at him. "Damn it all Jackie, get off the phone!"

The red being watched him with some trepidation.

With a stab of his finger he hit redial. "C'mon Jackie, _please, _pick-up," he pleaded. "Rose'll kill me if I let her kill you!"

>>>>>>>>>

Again, the phone buzzed behind her.

Jackie stopped and turned, never able to resist a ringing phone. She pulled the phone from its cradle and raised it to her ear. "Hello?"

>>>>>>>>>

The Doctor sagged against the TARDIS console. "Jackie, _don't open the door!_"

"_And hello to you to!" _Jackie's annoyed voice echoed down the line. _"And where's my daughter now then?" _

"Never mind," the Doctor replied, "just don't go outside!"

"_And why not Mr-High-and-Mighty?" _

"Because you will die."

There was a slight pause. _"Oh." _

The TARDIS shivered to a stop, and the Doctor bumped his hand against the console in congratulations.

"_Are you here then?" _Rose's mother questioned. _"I just heard that machine of yours. Is Rose coming? Why are you calling instead of her?" _And so on.

The Doctor rolled his eyes in exasperation. "Jackie, shut up," he ordered, vaguely surprised when she did. "Just stay put and _do not open your door._ I will be there in a second."

He slammed the phone down, and paused, looking at the TARDIS door with a mish-mash of emotions on his face.

"Doctor?" his crimson companion asked.

The Time Lord appeared to be weighing two things up in his mind. "Slapped by Jackie, killed by Rose, slapped by Jackie, killed by Rose…" He shook his head. "I dunno which is _worse…_"

"Doctor?"

He glanced over at it. "I'm about to get slapped."

"Really?"

"Uh huh."

And then they were running.

>>>>>>>>>

Something was happening to the door; golden tendrils curling around the edges, sinking into the walls and floors. Surging towards Jackie. She watched them, dumbstruck, almost paralyzed.

A latticework of gold threads traced their way over the wood of the door, cutting down, shredding the flimsy entranceway. The door teetered for a second; blocks of wood stacked one on top of the other.

And then they collapsed forward, scattering like arterial spray across the cheap carpet. Oddly prophetic.

"Well, I _didn't _open the door," Jackie murmured.

She hadn't, but something had.

And something stepped past the entranceway, lightly moving within the confines of the council flat.

"Rose!" Jackie gasped.

A curve of the lips; a deadly smile. "No."

>>>>>>>>>


	7. Chapter 6: Choosing

Disclaimer etc.: see Prologue.

Hey there, sorry about the delay. I got a case of writer's block on this fic after 'Doomsday', so I apologise. And the computer wouldn't let me post it yesterday.

And my thanks to everyone who reviewed previous chapters, you are fantastic!

Enjoy!

Golden Death 

_6 - Choosing_

"Jackie, get _back!_"

The Doctor's yell screamed through Jackie Tyler's head, shocking sense back into her, and she instinctively obeyed, falling away from her daughter-who-was-no-longer-her-daughter and scrambling through into the next room. "Where have you been?" she screeched back at the Time Lord.

He rolled his eyes. "That's the thanks I get for saving your life!"

"Yes!"

"Jackie,can you _please _be quiet!" he yelled, fury and fear flooding his voice.

She went quiet.

"Thank you." His attention left the older Tyler woman and moved to the Angels.

It was the first time he'd seen her in the flesh since they'd been separated, and he had to remind himself that it wasn't her; it wasn't Rose Tyler, TARDIS traveller, who stared out from those gold-flecked eyes.

"Leave her," he ordered dangerously, his fingers tightening around the sonic screwdriver in his hand. "Leave her _now._"

A bubbling laugh erupted from the full lips that he knew so well. "And how do you propose to make me?" they asked, multitudes of voices overlaying Rose's unique tone, pushing it down beneath the weight of the many above her.

And the Doctor, for once, was stumped.

>>>>>>>>>

Rose could see her Doctor, his dark eyes blazing with anger and determination and frustration and love.

"Don't give in," she murmured, sickeningly aware that he could not hear her. "Don't give up. _Don't let them win._"

>>>>>>>>>

A cruel smile widened on Rose's lips, spread by the Angels. "And for all you know, _Doctor, _your Rose could already be dead."

He didn't show any outward reaction, but an icy hand tightened around his heart for an eternal instant.

"For all you know, _Doctor, _we could have killed her the moment we stepped into this body." They were enjoying themselves; enjoying tormenting him. He could tell.

_Doctor. _The unseen Wolf, breathing reassurance into his mind. _Rose is _alive_. You know it as well as I. _

He smiled, equalling the Angels in arrogance. "I would know if Rose were dead," he shot back by way of answer. A pause, accompanied by a widening of his cocky grin. "_She is alive._"

>>>>>>>>>

Rose's fingers were clenched tight around the gleaming bars of her cage, her vision elsewhere. Fires raged around her, sending the temperature of the metal she grasped soaring up to way above the point at which water was reduced to gusting steam. She didn't notice as her skin blistered.

It wasn't important.

Because she could feel what the Angels were about to do with the power that was wrapped around her spirit. "No…" she moaned in a whisper. "Please no…"

They heard her, and laughed. **_maybe it is fortunate that your doctor arrived when he did, _**they mused. **_maybe he will make an even better lesson than your mother would. _**

"_NO!_" she screamed out, her voice echoing around the ruins of Heaven. "No! _Leave him alone!_"

There was a chuckle, a malicious cackle that set her teeth on edge. **_very well then. we will give you a choice. _**

_What? _

_**a choice of who lives, and who dies. **_

_No… No, you _can't!

A giggle. **_which will it be? the choice is yours; your mother, or your lover? _**

>>>>>>>>>

_DOCTOR! _

He jumped as her voice screamed through his head. _Rose? _

There was no answer, but he could somehow feel her despair and fear. His hearts twisted, and he turned to the Angels. "What have you done to her!" he raged. "What the hell have you done to her!"

The smile turned mocking. "Given her a choice," they replied in that multilayered voice.

"A choice?"

A short laugh. "A choice that only gods should have. Who lives, and who… doesn't live."

He understood. It was horrified understanding. _God no, Rose! _"That'll break her!"

They smiled, curving her lips upwards provocatively. "Exactly."

>>>>>>>>>

The Wolf heard what was said and unsaid, and it thought.

The Doctor was right. An impossible choice such as that would shatter Rose Tyler in two. It was sick really; the Angels were using Rose's love to destroy her and, ultimately, cast everything into shadow.

But if it could get to Rose then maybe it could fortify her, keep her strong until the Doctor could bring her back from the brink of despair with a touch and a kiss. The Wolf would have grinned.

But then the Wolf fretted. There was no way to get to Rose, no link to her.

Wait…

The Angels held Rose's body, and they had access to her knowledge too. How else would they have known the effect that the decision between Jackie and the Doctor would cause in the human's mind? But Rose's consciousness was not in the Tyler flat; the Wolf would have been able to sense its other half if she were here.

It couldn't sense the whole, but it could feel something. A tenuous connection; a little whisper drifting through space to caress its spirit.

And the whisper was coming through the Angels.

>>>>>>>>>

A golden wisp moved through the air, barely visible against the blaze of power that came from Rose's unwilling body. It wavered, moving slowly but systematically towards the Angels. It was insignificant; nothing.

But the Doctor saw it nonetheless.

And he knew what it was. _The Wolf? _

_Doctor. _

_What are you doing? _

_I can reach her. _The Doctor's hearts skipped a beat. _I can reach her, through the Angels' hold on her mind. _

"Doctor?" the Angels demanded, but he ignored them and watched, vaguely open-mouthed, as the golden trace wrapped itself around the-body-that-had-been-Rose's neck. _Hold her for me, _he asked. _Keep her sane until I can reach her. _

_What else would I do? _He could feel amusement. _And I'll see what I can do about the Angels as well. You never know what I might find. _

He smiled. _Good luck. _

And then the Wolf sank through the perfect skin, reaching down to the very centre of the foreign spirits' grip on the body. Rose's body spasmed as the Angels suddenly found their control weakened by the passing of the Bad Wolf.

"What—?" they managed to get out.

The Doctor grinned. "Looks like Rose won't have to make the choice after all," he said softly.

They looked up at him. He almost took a step back at the pure hatred that blazed from the alien intelligence behind Rose's dark eyes. "Then she will make no more choices _ever _again," they hissed malevolently.

"What?" he demanded sharply.

The body staggered to one side, catching itself on the wall for support. The head tilted up to glare at the Doctor, and a sneer spread across the lips. "_She_ _will_ _die._"

>>>>>>>>>


	8. Chapter 7: Fading

Disclaimer etc.: see Prologue.

I'm SO sorry for the massive delay, but I got major writer's block and didn't write a thing for about two weeks.

But I'm back into the swing of things now (hopefully) and I'm happy 'cause it's my birthday soon! Fourteen! (Finally!)

Anyway, enough with the celebrations, and a huge thanks to everyone who reviewed, and Enjoy the latest instalment!

Golden Death

_7 - Fading_

Sudden pain in Rose Tyler's head; flaring her synaptic pathways into silent infernos of black flame.

The ruins of Heaven around her faded to black in her vision as utter agony assaulted all five of her senses, the Angels intent on destroying her completely and utterly. She couldn't move; couldn't scream; couldn't breathe. She couldn't comprehend the enormity of the white-hot destructive rage that swept through her and yet did not belong to her, overtaking her and ravaging her mind.

There was nothing to stop the burning trail from sweeping through her mind and she couldn't fight it. There was nothing between her and the Blackness. And there was, on top of that, the Angels' agony, and it multiplied the blaze a hundredfold.

But there was something else, something cool in the midst of all the heat.

She reached for it desperately through the wall of pain, forcing her body and mind to work. She couldn't see her saviour, but she knew that it was there, and as a cry ripped itself free from her she tried to draw the coolness into herself.

And then it was there, inside her head, wrapping around her mind and dousing the fires with caring precision. She cried out in relief, her voice a mere rasp. She was vaguely aware of fires burning around her; the Angels' rage re-igniting the pyre of Heaven, but she curled into herself and blocked it out.

_Rose. Listen to me. _

"What…" She couldn't form a coherent sentence, but she didn't need to. It was inside her head and knew what she was asking.

_The Bad Wolf. Remember me? Remember yourself? _

She remembered the Wolf. Of course she did. She uncurled slightly, watching as the flames were held back by a gossamer-thin curtain of gold. She could feel herself joining with the Wolf once again, the equation of balance fulfilling itself.

But she was afraid. "The Doctor?"

The Wolf cast a soothing touch over her mind. _He will come for you. But not right now. He needs you to stay strong. Can you do that? For him?_

"For him." She smiled weakly, and part of her wondered why she was so weak. "I'll stay."

She promised that, but the weakness had already taken hold of her; a worm eating away at her energy and spirit. It was a very real possibility that her promise would be shattered into a million fragments; scattered to the winds of space and love.

It was only a matter of time.

>>>>>>>>>

Blue brilliance was being torn free from Rose's unwilling body, the Wolf's influence loosening the Angels' hold on her. A furious wail tore itself from the lips that were still controlled by Them; a rant of agony and anger against the Doctor and his love.

The Doctor himself should be smiling, should be laughing and performing his own elaborate version of gloating happily. But Rose was still in danger, and the Angels' last words hovered in his mind. "_She_ _will_ _die._"

So he couldn't quite persuade the muscles in his face to form a smile.

With a soft almost-sigh Rose's body crumpled to the carpeted hallway of the Tyler flat. The skein of gold that had been wound around her form faded, leaving her nude and vulnerable.

_And beautiful, _the Time Lord's mind supplied.

_Now is not the time, _he reprimanded himself.

His gaze remained trained on the blue wisp that hovered in the air. It twisted itself into a ghostly spiral; tendril-type trails of cloudy substance drifting through the warm air.

"Leave," he ordered softly.

It swung towards him slightly, seemed to waver, undecided.

"Leave. You've lost her." He studied it. "Now _leave!_"

The blue ghost faded, and the Doctor didn't give his mind over to the too-easiness of its defeat. He had more important things to worry about.

He took a step forwards and dropped to his knees beside Rose's body. Slender fingers ran over her neck, searching for the pulse-point. He breathed a sigh of relief as the blood vessel throbbed against the pads of his fingertips. Skin skated against skin as he gently stroked her satin-smooth cheek.

"Oh Rose," he murmured, before shrugging off his long coat. He smoothly wrapped it around her curvaceous form, his fingers lingering a little longer than was strictly necessary. He pulled her into his arms and rose to his feet.

"And where d'you think you're going?" a shrill voice piped up from behind him.

The Doctor sighed and turned around. "TARDIS," he answered, still unable to bring himself to inject any semblance of brightness into his tone.

Jackie came out from the next room, her hair a blonde mess. "And what the hell have you done to my daughter!"

The Doctor pulled Rose imperceptibly closer to his chest. He was _not _going to let her go. "That's why I have to get to the TARDIS," he replied. "She's… broken."

"You'd better fix her."

"I know."

>>>>>>>>>

The red being had no idea how it fitted into all of this.

It had been, well, if not _happy _then at least _content_ with its little abode in Hell. It had been warm with a nice little garden and a rectangular doormat, and then this 'Doctor' character turned up, stirred up long-buried memories of the hole in its heart, and asked for its help.

Help which, it seemed, was completely unneeded.

It was a tag-along, a follower, a sheep just following the flock.

And it felt incredibly useless.

It watched, forgotten, as the Doctor carried the female who must be Rose Tyler out into the courtyard and into the TARDIS. He could feel her emptiness, and wished fervently for him to heal her soon. To 'fix' her, and 'fix' him in turn.

As it watched, an older woman stepped out onto the exposed corridor that ran in front of the flat. Her gaze followed the pair as the Doctor and Rose Tyler vanished inside the blue box, worrying her lower lip as the time machine vanished with a throbbing _whoosh. _The red being could plainly see the similarity in appearance between the woman beside him and the girl the Doctor cradled so lovingly in his arms.

It cleared its throat, and the blonde woman looked over at it. She performed a mild double-take, and then smiled sympathetically at it. "Did you come with him?" she asked.

It nodded. "And he left me here."

"Yeah," she sighed. "He does that." She sniffed softly, staring at the spot where the TARDIS had vanished.

The red being reached up and awkwardly patted her shoulder. "The Doctor seems to be a very capable man," it consoled. "I'm sure that Rose Tyler will be well."

"Thank you," she replied softly. Then she looked over at it. "D'you want to come it?" she requested quietly.

The question surprised it, but nonetheless it nodded. "I would be honoured."

She sniffed again, cast one last glance at the courtyard, and then turned back to the ravaged doorway and stepped inside. "I'll put the kettle on. We'll have a nice cup of tea."

The Doctor's erstwhile helper frowned in confusion as it followed Jackie Tyler into her flat. " 'Tea'? What is 'tea'?"

"You are joking, right?"

>>>>>>>>>

It only dawned on the Doctor when he was inside the TARDIS and drifting in the Time Vortex that he had no idea how to get to Heaven. No idea at all.

He cursed under his breath, and studied the console in the hopes that something would spring out at him. Hell, he'd be happy if an idea jumped at him, wrestled him to the floor and punched his lights out. Just as long as he knew what to do; where to go.

_Doctor. Use your head. _

"I am. It's not working."

The TARDIS tutted. _Rose. _

"What?"

_Rose's body is linked to Rose's spirit. One can find the other. _

The faintest trace of what might be called a smile touched the Doctor's thin lips. "Are you sure?"

_Of course I am. _

"But—"

_Bring her here, _the TARDIS interrupted. _Touch her hand to the console. Balance will do the rest. _

"I've had just about enough of 'balance'," the Doctor muttered to himself.

>>>>>>>>>

The Angels had left the girl's body and the power that that had afforded them, but they were not gone.

A faint trace of sharp blueness wisped just next to the ceiling of the Tyler flat. The blueness was watching Jackie Tyler and the red being, and wondering.

It still had some vestige of strength left in it, the energy it had sucked from Rose's soul. Maybe just enough energy to inflict a single devastating blow. If it had had eyes they would have fixed firmly onto the older blonde.

And if it had had a mouth, its lips would have been fixed in a grin.

>>>>>>>>>

The TARDIS ground to a halt, and the Doctor stared at the doors in silence. "Are you sure this is it?" he asked, his words directed at the TARDIS.

_It is nowhere else. _

The Doctor sniffed hard, and then gathered Rose's body into his arms again. He looked down at her almost-lifeless form, and a loving smile wormed its way onto his lips.

"Let's go take a look," he murmured.

>>>>>>>>>

The Wolf was once again wound into Rose, making almost everything as it should be, but it could feel that there was something wrong. The rejoining of the two halves of the whole should make everything well again, at least for a while. Until the Doctor came.

But it hadn't, and the Wolf could feel Rose fading from its grasp. It howled silently at her, ordering her to wake up, to say something, to _live. _It berated her and cajoled her, but nothing worked.

Rose Tyler was silent, and fading, and as she faded she dragged the Bad Wolf down with her.

The Angels had done something to her before they left, _drained _her of her strength and spirit. And now their words were on the verge of becoming true.

Rose was dying.

>>>>>>>>>


	9. Chapter 8: Homecoming

Disclaimer etc.: see Prologue.

Hey, me again. I'll be surprised if anyone actually reads this chapter after the wait I put you guys through… Sorry.

I think there will only be a couple more chapters after this one; nearing the end now.

A massive thanks to all the people who reviewed the last chapter, I love you all, and I hope this one is up to par.

Enjoy!

Golden Death

_8 - Homecoming_

The red being settled down into the armchair Jackie Tyler had offered it. It clutched a purple mug between its hands, the heated ceramic reminding it faintly of what it had once called 'home'. The brown liquid within the vessel smelt vaguely familiar. It took a sip and blinked. The drink was remarkably pleasant.

"See? _That's _tea." Jackie stood over him, hands on hips in a motherly fashion. "Where do you live anyway?" she inquired belligerently. "What sort of place doesn't have any _tea?_" The tone of her voice made it clear that any place that didn't know of the existence of tea was obviously backwards to the extreme.

Another trickle of warm softness made its way down the red being's gullet. "I lived in Hell," it replied matter-of-factly.

Jackie blinked. "Hell?"

"Rather a pleasant place. Better than it sounds."

"Is it—"

"It is not fiery."

"How'd you know I was going to ask that?"

"Everyone does."

"Oh." Jackie smiled faintly and plumped herself down on the adjacent sofa. "Well then," she started, "why don't you tell me all about it?"

---------

The Angels hovered, invisible, contemplating. They knew that they would be unable to destroy Rose Tyler, or the Doctor, but he knew that this woman (however much the Time Lord protested) meant much to both of them. And grief was _such_ a powerful emotion, with the raw potential for creating a relationship, chasing two people into each others' arms as they grieved together. And then there was the possibility that the sorrow would be too much, and the relationship would shake itself to pieces in the aftermath of crushing loss. The Angels knew which one they preferred.

They hovered, swaying closer to the blonde's head, invisible blueness brushing the bright strands of hair. They could feel her thoughts, racing a mile a minute, listening to the red being, worrying over the fate of her precious daughter, and, oddly, hoping that the Doctor was safe as well.

Odd. The Angels had gotten the impression that Jackie wasn't too fond of the ancient Time Lord. And that it was very much _vice versa_.

But no matter.

Once they were inside the woman's brain, snapping the cerebral pathways, burning the bridges from her soul to her body, there would be no secrets from them, and they would find all the answers they desired on a fleeting whim. And when that was done, maybe a timespace of a fraction of a second, they would set her body aflame from within, and abandon her.

Anticipatory pleasure flooded the Angels, and they sank down, through skin and flesh and blood and bone.

And almost instantly, she belonged to them.

---------

Fire; heat, blazing against his face, making him blink.

_Fire and brimstone, _the Doctor's mind murmured. _Heaven becomes Hell. _He suppressed a shiver in the heat. He hugged Rose's body closer to his chest, protecting her from the flames.

His dark gaze flickered across the wreck of Heaven, scanning, searching. He needed her; not the lifeless form in his arms. He needed _her; _her warm body in the circle of his arms, her breath gusting against his ear, her soft lips pressed to his with her dextrous fingers wound into his spiked hair. He sniffed roughly.

_Look for gold. _The TARDIS again, lending a gentle helping hand, snapping him out of his morose thoughts. _The Wolf. Rose. _

He acknowledged her input and her prodding, and forced himself back to the moment. His gaze flickered back across the conflagration before him. She was here, somewhere. A smile traced his thin lips as he saw it. A slender twisting column of whisper-thin gold tracing up to the arched sky hanging above Heaven.

"Rose!"

---------

_Come on come on come on come on _comeon!

The Wolf was yelling inside their joint mind, trying desperately to drag Rose back from the black spectre of death. She was slipping from the Wolf's grip, her strength all-but gone. The Angels had unwittingly stolen the energy from her soul and that was _not a good thing. _

The Doctor was close, the Wolf could feel it. He was racing, running through the flames, her name on his lips in a panicked hiss. No, wait. Not a hiss. A yell, a scream, loud enough to reverberate around Heaven like a church bell.

But yet the Time Lord was not close enough.

The Wolf wept softly. The Doctor was too late, too late to save his love. The Wolf could feel Rose's grip on reality and the world fading with every raged gasp of oxygen her spirit took.

The Wolf rose up, still weeping, but now searching, desperately hoping that _he would come for her. _

---------

Jackie Tyler jerked.

The red being raised one crimson eyebrow in reaction. "Jackie Tyler?" it inquired softly, the mug of still-steaming tea halfway to its lips.

The blonde turned to face it, but her lips made no sound.

The red being became abruptly worried. "Jackie Tyler?" it asked again, a silver spider's-thread of worry seeping into its voice.

She smiled. And it was a very familiar smile as well. The exact duplicate of the one that had slid across Rose Tyler's lips when she was not herself. When she was possessed. Possessed by…

_The Angels. _

The red being dropped its mug, tea splashing across the floor, and lunged forward, seizing Jackie Tyler's head between its palms. Its head dropped until its chin brushed its scarlet chest and its lips moved in silent almost-prayer.

And then Jackie Tyler and the Angels began to scream.

---------

He could see her. Her faint form, curled over on the hard ground. And he knew that he was losing her.

"_NO!" _

He plunged through the flames, barely noticing the fire that licked at his pale flesh. Even if he had noticed, he wouldn't have cared. He needed to get to her, more than he'd ever needed anything in his life.

_Rose, please, _hold on!

He crashed to his knees beside her, tears already beading in his dark eyes. He laid her feather-light body down next to the curled outline of her spirit. He felt a single liquid diamond burst free from his eye and wend its way down his cheek. The Doctor reached out to the spirit-Rose. "Rose…" Her name cracked on his lips. "Rose, wake up," he whispered desperately, brokenly.

He saw slight movement, a twitch of an eyelid, maybe less.

"Rose, please," he pleaded. "Don't leave me, you promised, please, _you can't…_" He was close to breaking down, and that was something he hadn't done in a very long time. But if there was anyone in the entirety of time and space worth weeping over, it was Rose Tyler.

But the last of the Time Lords wasn't ready to weep yet. The soul's eyes were open and she was gazing up at him.

He ventured a tentative smile, finally allowing himself to believe that this whole mess might work out. "Rose, please. Listen to me. Come home."

"…home?"

He slowly reached out his hand to her, tears still rolling silently down his face despite his nervous smile. "Home," he reaffirmed, and in that one word there was every promise he had ever made her, and every emotion he had ever shown her in his naked soul.

She raised her translucent hand oh-so-slowly, and touched her ghostly skin to his. His fingers cradled lovingly over hers, sheltering her hand. "Come home," he repeated in an almost-heartbroken whisper.

The spirit of Rose Tyler gazed up at the Doctor, and then a smile broke her lips. Her hand faded to golden dust in his grasp, the crumbling carrying on up her arm and reaching the rest of her ethereal form. His forehead furrowed in fear and panic. "Rose!"

_Sshh. Quiet. Wait. _He wasn't sure how she said those three words, but it was definitely her.

So he obeyed, and gold dust swam around his knees.

---------

There was no time for niceties, no time to ask for permission. It was sorry for the intrusion, but this would most likely save her life.

The red being delved into Jackie Tyler's mind, plummeting past the surface and swimming down to the very core of the Tyler matriarch. There was a tightly packed kernel of emotions that formed the centre of who she was, and the red being was instinctively drawn to the glow of this defiant blaze of passion. Maternal love and care wrapped around fear of the unknown; the heart of Rose Tyler's mother.

But wrapped around this bundle of care was a blue shadow; a cold ghost that had no place in the warmth of this human's soul.

The red being reached out with insubstantial fingers, carefully avoiding anything that Jackie Tyler might want to keep secret. It grabbed hold of the blue phantom and in that instant knew that only one entity of the three embroiled in this silent struggle would come out alive.

Before, the red being hadn't known how it fitted into all of this.

Now it did.

It twisted its mental fingers into the insubstantial substance of the Angels. It felt more than heard a psychic scream, agony and anger in their purest forms. The red being from Hell dragged the Angels from Heaven into its mind, releasing Jackie Tyler from her torment.

_This was not balance, _it screamed into its head. _This was _control. _Domination for you. Subservience for us. _The red being wasn't even aware that it was repeating the Doctor's impassioned words.

The Angels screamed with anger and the creeping madness of terror.

The red being, for the first time in eons drew itself up, mentally and physically. It could feel its brain dying, neurons ripped apart by the wild thrashings of the Angels within its skull. But that didn't matter; pain didn't matter. Not anymore. The screams faded as physical sensation crept away from the red being's body.

Wondrously it realised it could hear a small boy's voice, calling to it. _Papa? Papa is that you?_

The red being smiled. _I am here. _

_Are you coming home papa? I missed you! _

A single tear slipped down its crimson cheek. _Yes. I'm coming home, son. _

Childish laughter, filled with joy and hope and peace and happiness flooded through the red being's head. The giggles overcame the faint whimpers of the dying Angels and the red being felt a small hand in its own. _Come on papa! _

The red being's spirit slipped free from its burned-out corporeal form and it followed its eager son, long removed from this world. _You'll like home papa! _

The empty scarlet body slid to the worn carpet in Jackie Tyler's flat, forgotten.

The red being ran with its son, and as they chased one another towards their home, 'it'became 'him', and their former existence crumbled to ashes around the finally reunited pair.

---------


	10. Chapter 9: Remembering

Disclaimer etc.: see Prologue.

Hey! Finally wrote this chapter, and I am _really _sorry for the massive delay. The evil of writer's block struck again and I started yelling at my laptop several times.

But it's done now, and I think I might be nearing the end. Another chapter and an epilogue maybe? I dunno. Anyway. Reviews are much appreciated, so yeah. You know what I mean!

Enjoy!

Golden Death

_9 - Remembering_

The Wolf rejoiced.

It had thought that all was lost, that Rose Tyler was going to die. It had felt itself dissembling, felt its molecules drifting apart.

And then the Doctor had crashed through the wavering golden barrier, falling to his knees with tears in his eyes. The Wolf watched as the Time Lord reached out, his hand wavering. And he asked her to come home, his voice cracking as he spoke.

The Bad Wolf took a moment to reflect. The Doctor was different. His shields had dropped; all barriers erased by the fear and pain that Rose's disappearance had inflicted on the fragile balance of his mind. The Wolf knew that the moment things were better again, when Rose was well and they were once again running hand-in-hand from terrible dangers, his façade would spring back into place. Cocky, happy. But now, as the vulnerable Time Lord knelt in the ruins of Heaven, he was broken, his face glistening with cool tears.

But that was just for now.

The Wolf felt a tug on its being. Rose was calling to it, her unheard voice desperate and joyous all at once. They needed to be intertwined once again to be able to enter their corporeal form. The golden wisp that was the Wolf drifted down to mingle with the golden dust, and they swirled around the befuddled Doctor. "Rose…" There was a question in his voice, and the Wolf could feel the ache in Rose to answer him.

_Rose. _The Wolf felt her attention turn to it. _It's time. _

---------

The Doctor could only watch, helpless for once in his life, as the gold dust strayed over from him to cluster around Rose's body. Every single square millimetre of her satin skin was dusted with a skein of gold.

He heard a gentle sigh in the back of his mind, a sigh of release and joining.

The gold began to sink down, passing through Rose's skin with the barest amount of pressure.

_Please let this be real. _He was begging, pleading with someone he didn't know existed for Rose to come back to him. He needed her in his life; without her, he didn't know what he'd do. _Please let her live. _His dark gaze watched as Rose took on a soft golden glow. He briefly remembered; another time, another face, another lifetime. The birth of the Bad Wolf. _Please let her come back to me. _The glow remained, highlighting her face with lustrous tints. Hope stirred in the Time Lord's heart. _Please. _

---------

All that was left of her erstwhile companion was a faint dusting of crimson in the air and a puddle of spilling lukewarm tea seeping into the thin carpet. Jackie Tyler didn't know what to do. The Doctor's dealing were confusing enough without him dumping a helpless red being of some sort on her doorstep, who didn't know about _tea _of all things, and then having said red being vanish before her eyes.

Jackie's head was fuzzy. She was _positive _that the cocky alien had something to do with the poor thing's disappearance. It had been such a nice companion, very polite and appreciative, and there was no way that it had just died.

No way. No way in Hell.

Jackie Tyler bustled about the flat, wondering where the red being had vanished off to, her shocked and brutalised mind refusing to consider the possibility that her new friend wasn't coming back.

---------

It was warm, and that was the first thing that she noticed.

Too warm; she could almost feel flames licking against her naked skin. She shifted slightly, her limbs feeling oddly sluggish, like she was disconnected from her physical form in some way. Her lips parted, barely parted, and a soft moan slipped out. That was reassuring. If she could feel discomfort then that meant that she was still alive. That she had escaped Them.

'Them'? She tried to remember who They were.

She felt someone take her hand, long cool fingers intertwining with her own. "Rose?" The voice was faint but undeniably _familiar._ "Rose, can you hear me?"

She wanted to reply, she wanted to scream _"Yes!" _at the top of her lungs, but she found she couldn't. Her body was stiff and lethargic at the same time and she struggled to sync her physical movements with the demands of her mind.

"Rose?" Fear had entered the oh-so-familiar voice. "Rose, please." A quaver. "Can you hear me?"

Who was he; what was his name? She dredged her memories for him, but she just couldn't remember. She squirmed within the enclosure of her foggy mind, but found no answers.

---------

_She doesn't know who I am. _

The Doctor felt his eyes suddenly tear up as his shaking fingers lightly stroked the back of Rose's limp hand. He'd seen her move; seen her eyes flicker beneath the closed lids. He'd heard the soft moan as it escaped her ruby lips. And then he'd called her name.

But she hadn't responded.

And it terrified him.

"Rose, please." His voice had dropped to a scared, intimate whisper. "Can you hear me?" His voice cracked and he closed his eyes for a brief moment, a single sparkling tear making its way down the side of his nose. The diamond of sorrow rested against his upper lip and his tongue instinctively darted out, sucking the dampness into his mouth. _She can't be gone. She can't. She knows who I am. I have to believe that. _

He opened his eyes again, the tears held back for the moment. "Rose." Again his voice cracked, but this time he kept it under control. "Rose, please." _Believe in her. _"Do you know who I am?"

She didn't answer, and in the silence he heard his heart shatter into a million pieces, shards of agony piercing throughout his soul.

---------

The Wolf was last to join the mix, and with it came all the memories that Rose Tyler could not grasp. It eased into the human girl's mind, brushing lovingly over synaptic pathways and delicate webbings of neurons, erasing the damage that the Angels had done to her brain.

Rose Tyler gasped as she felt her knowledge come flooding back into her healed mind, and a smile tilted her lips upwards.

She was smiling. The confusion of a moment ago was gone, replaced by joy and… remembrance?

Hope returned to the Time Lord's broken spirit, and he squeezed her hand lightly in his. "Rose?" he ventured, praying that she was fixed, praying that she was his again. She shifted lightly on the rough, warm ground. Her smile remained in place, an easy upturning of the lips. No answer was forthcoming.

But this time it didn't break him.

This time it didn't shatter him.

Because he could feel that she was going to be alright.

He squeezed her hand again, his hearts thumping in pounding synchronisation. "Rose?" he asked again, louder. "Rose, can you hear me?"

Her eyelids fluttered, once, twice, and then they opened. She gazed up at him, her gentle brown eyes flecked with iridescent, sparkling gold. A pink tongue darted out to moisten her dry lips, and she frowned softly up at him. "Doctor?"

He broke out into a wide, insatiable, manic, crazy grin. "Rose!"

With that cry he grabbed her up into a fierce hug, his face buried in her neck, her arms tightly around his neck. They held onto each other in the ashes of Heaven, and as one, they wept with joy.

---------

The doors to the ancient blue box swung open of their own accord and the Doctor carried Rose into the TARDIS, bridal style, his trench coat tucked snugly around her nude body. They refused to let go of one another, even when they reached the console and the doors closed firmly.

Rose twined her arms securely around his waist, resting her cheek against his chest. Her eyes were closed and tears of joy and love still glittered on her human cheeks. "Thank you," she murmured, listening to the beating of his hearts, hearts that beat solely for her.

"Don't thank me," he whispered in return, one hand resting on the back of her head, the other around her slim waist.

"You saved my life."

His thumb gently caressed her silken blonde hair. "I saved my life too."

She understood the implication; if she had died, he would have followed her. It wrenched her heart. Her eyes filled with tears once again, and she tilted her head up, pressing a kiss to the corner of his mouth. "When I die, _promise _me you'll go on. I couldn't live if I knew that…" She couldn't say it.

He gave her a mischievous smile. Almost _Puckish_ in fact. It reassured her. "Who says you're going to die before I do?"

She frowned questioningly. "Doctor?"

"Never mind."

She narrowed her eyes at him playfully, but she decided that, for the moment, it was enough just being in his company, in his arms. She had thought, in a broken moment, and instant of fear and pain and sorrow, that she would never see him again.

"I love you Doctor," she whispered against his chest, closing her eyes, listening to his dual heartbeat.

She felt him press a soft kiss into her hair and a warm feeling swept through her. "I love you too Rose. Never forget that."

She paused, and then groaned.

"Rose?"

"I wrecked Mum's flat."

He chuckled softly. "Yeah. I remember that."

"Oh _no…_" She buried her face in his chest. "She's gonna kill me," she mumbled against the cloth of his shirt.

"No, she's gonna kill _me,_" he corrected.

She giggled and nodded in agreement. She placed her hands on his chest and pushed back slightly, still standing within the circle of his arms, looking up at him with love in her gold-flecked eyes. "Well then," she started, "better get it over and done with then?"

"What?" He looked horrified. "Your _Mother_?"

"Yup."

"But…" He was lost for words.

"Lets go visit Mum!" She pouted sweetly at him. He found himself melted. "Like I said, get it over and done with." Her eyes twinkled at him.

He harrumphed as he turned to the console, her hand still joined with his. "Like _I _said," he mumbled, "I am _so _gonna get slapped."

Rose just giggled.

---------

Jackie decided the flat was finally tidy, that she could see no faults, and she sat down lightly in an overstuffed armchair, her fingers jerkily tracing the patterns worked into the woven fabric. Her eyes were wide and her blonde hair was ruffled, falling limply to her shoulders, unrestrained.

She began to rock forward and back in the squishy chair, forward and back, forward and back. She was waiting for the Doctor to come back with her daughter and her friend, and until then, she could wait.

Jackie Tyler sat amidst the mess of clustered coffee cups and disarrayed magazines, and waited.

---------


	11. Chapter 10: Finally Fixing

Disclaimer etc.: see Prologue.

Once more, sorry for the delay. My Doctor Who muse took a looooong holiday...

And I've got a bone to pick with you lot! This story is on _thirty-eight_ alerts, _nineteen _favourites and in _six _C2s. And I got SIX reviews for the last chapter. Reviews seriously do encourage the muse, and I'm beginning to think that you guys don't want this finished... _Please _review. A last plea, 'cause I only have an epilogue left to do, and it'll probably be up in early January. I'll love you all forever and ever, and I will send you all cookies. Please?

Enjoy! (And review!)

Golden Death

_­10 - Finally Fixing_

It was night in the Powell Estate. Curtains were pulled shut and a few hardy stars twinkled overhead, half-hidden by the smog of London town.

The TARDIS faded into existence slowly, almost as if the ancient time machine was reluctant to appear. As if it knew something that its inhabitants didn't and it didn't want them hurt.

Maybe they should have paid attention: they might have been better prepared.

As it was, the Doctor and his Rose cracked open the door and spilled out, laughing, in constant contact. He wouldn't let her go. Not now. Not ever again. Losing her twice had been two times to many.

The Time Lord wrinkled his nose up in the direction of Jackie Tyler's flat. "Do I _have _to go up there?" he moaned.

"Yup." Rose squeezed his fingers lightly and laughed softly at his recalcitrance. "That gonna be a problem, Doctor?"

But he didn't reply, and his forehead crinkled into a frown.

Rose's smile vanished. "Doctor?"

His free hand lifted up slowly and pointed at Jackie's brightly-lit flat. "I think something's wrong with your Mum."

---------

The door was still in a mangled mess of wood shavings and metal hinges on the floor. The carpet was still vaguely burnt from the wave of golden death that had blasted off the Angels. The faint smell of sulphur still permeated the undeniably-shabby rooms. Nothing was tidied – nothing had been fixed.

Something was definitely wrong.

Rose's eyes were wide. "Mum?" she called, her voice quavering oh-so-slightly.

"Rose…" the Doctor murmured.

She released his long fingers and stepped forward, panic creeping into her heart. "Mum?!"

"In here!" came Jackie's strangely chirpy tone.

The Doctor blinked, and followed Rose through to the living room. He stopped in the doorway, startled. Rose was just in front of him and she turned back to face him, tears shining in the eyes that had sparkled with life and love just minutes before. "What's wrong with her?" she whispered hoarsely.

His gaze fell on Jackie.

Rose's mother was rocking back and forth in a distinctly over-full armchair, long nails digging ferociously into the arms. Blonde hair was splayed all over the place, uncombed and filthy. There was a disturbing smile on her face, serenely happy and strangely crazed all at once.

Lips that were slashed across with crimson lipsticks opened, and Jackie's twisted happy-go-lucky voice came out. "Did you bring him back with you?" Her eyes were bright; focused and glazed at once.

A tear slipped free from Rose's eye and began to trace a path down her palely-golden cheek. "Bring who?" she asked in a whisper. The Doctor interlaced his fingers with hers once more – it was too much for her; she was breaking.

Faint confusion traced Jackie's face. "I never asked his name," she said calmly, "but he didn't know what tea was. Imagine that! Not knowing about tea!"

"Mum…"

Jackie's head cocked slightly to one side. Her expression became mildly inquisitive. "Yes?"

Rose closed her eyes and turned back to the Doctor. "What's _wrong _with her?" she breathed, pressing her forehead into his shoulder.

He pulled her closer, his arms around her. Long-fingered hands rubbed absent circles on her back, still clad in nothing but his coat. "It must have been the Angels," he said softly. "One last act of cruelty."

A strangled sob escaped Rose's lips. "Can you fix her?"

"Maybe." He lightly kissed the top of her head. "Maybe." A sigh. "I can try."

Rose sobbed again.

And the empty shell of Jackie Tyler merely watched, and smiled, and rocked.

---------

The Doctor cradled Jackie's face between his palms, his eyes closed, his thoughts lightly brushing hers. He frowned, just a light crinkle of pale skin.

"Doctor?" Rose was knelt by his side, her fingers on his shoulder, tears drying on her face. "What is it?"

"Someone else has been inside her head," he murmured. "Someone beside the Angels."

"Can you…"

He smiled, without opening his eyes. "I think so."

She let out a long, shuddering breath of relief, and he could feel her smile. His heart swelled, and, riding on the buoyancy of her love, delved gently into the Tyler matriarch's mind.

He brushed gently over shattered neurons and broken connections, and, with his soft touch, the pathways reconnected, fixed, healed. He put her brain right, but she was still silent. She still smiled with the expression of the half-dead.

He bit his lip and went deeper.

_Jackie? _he called. _Jackie, are you in here? _

No words came back to him, but he felt… something. A stirring. A resurrection. His breath hitched. _Hey! Jackie! _

_Doctor? _

_Yes! _He rejoiced silently, and a smile spread across his physical lips.

_What are you doing inside my head?! _

He chewed his lip. _Saving your sanity maybe? Not that there was much of it to start off with… _

_Saving my sanity? There's nothing wrong with my sanity, and I am saner than _you! _You're nuts!_

_And that's a bad thing? _

_Yes! _He almost heard her huff. _Don't know _what _Rose sees in you… _

He smiled. Jackie's comment brought up memories, very good memories. No pain, no loss. Joy.

Well.

Joy and… happiness of a more _physical _kind.

And then he felt Jackie Tyler's inquisitive mind nosing around in his thoughts. Some very personal thoughts. _Damnit damnit damnit! _he hissed and desperately tried to backtrack – to get _her _out of _his _head.

Too late.

Indignance and maternal rage poured through him, along with a slightly scary speculative air. But, predictably, the rage won out and she exploded inside his head. _You are _sleeping _with my _daughter?!

_Erm… _He flailed for words. _It's consensual? _

And _that_ comment didn't exactly help.

---------

Rose paced the muddled floor of her mother's flat, hugging the Doctor's long coat around her. They'd been in that strange mind-meld-thing for about half an hour now, and she was getting worried.

And then the Doctor squeaked.

She stopped and stared at him. No, she _wasn't _imagining things. He just _squeaked. _And then he did it again.

Rose took a step closer, worried. "Doctor?" she asked, half-aware that he wouldn't be able to hear her.

_Squeak. _

And then, before she could say anything else, the Doctor's eyes flew open, closely followed by Jackie's. Rose looked between them, confused.

And then Jackie slapped him. _Hard. _

He jumped backwards, nursing his cheek, watching Jackie warily.

And then she did it again. And again.

Jackie Tyler, blonde shopaholic and single mother, chased the Doctor, time traveller and last of the Time Lords, out of the flat, slapping him as she went.

Rose's mouth hung open. She followed the sounds of her Doctor's yelps and watched, in utter amazement, as her mother chased her lover around the courtyard outside the flat.

"That will teach you to sleep with my daughter!" came Jackie's shrill shout.

"It's _consensual!_" came the Doctor's protests.

And Rose Tyler, recently possessed, abused, brutalised and tortured, burst out laughing.

---------


	12. Epilogue: Impossibly Far Away

Disclaimer etc.: see Prologue.

And it is over.

Thanks to _everyone _who reviewed, to the forty of you who stuck this on your alerts, the twenty-one who have it on favourites and the seven C2s that archived me. My little duology is finished, and thanks to those who've been along for the ride.

For the final time, read, review, but most of all, _enjoy! _

Golden Death

_Epilogue - Impossibly Far Away _

The TARDIS spun in the Time Vortex, oscillating and circling around an invisible point, known only to her. She was quiet, resting, recuperating.

But those inside her… Well, not so much. The pair were too active, to thoughtful, to rest.

---------

Rose leant against the railing in the control room, half-watching the Doctor as he absently flicked switches and hopped channels on what looked like a sort of intergalactic TV. A faint smile traced her lips as he bounced around, but only faint. She couldn't bring herself to smile fully – not yet.

She couldn't explain it; this sudden bout of melancholy. Before, when her mother had chased her lover around her house, slaps abounding, she'd laughed. Laughed, and smiled. But now…? The thrill of safety and victory had worn off, and she was tired.

And she was thinking – not about herself. About Jackie. About that self-same mother that had chased her Doctor. He hadn't said anything, but she knew it, inside. Her mother had nearly died. And if they hadn't been there, she would've.

She shivered.

The metal beneath her gave slightly as he leaned beside her. "You okay?"

She was tempted to give the answer that would appease him, to plaster on a smile as she did makeup and give a convincingly-chirpy _"Yeah!" _Tempted, but she couldn't quite bring herself to say it. She couldn't lie to him: not now.

She looked up, and their eyes met. She smiled, weakly. "No."

Nothing more was needed to be said. A hand on her shoulder, and then she was in his arms, gripping fiercely onto his lapels, burying her face in his chest. He held her close, one hand rubbing lazy circles on her back.

They were silent. Her shoulders shuddered, now and then.

He finally broke the silence. "It's your mother." Not a question.

She sniffed. "Yeah." She could feel the tears in her eyes. "She could've died."

His arms tightened. "Yeah."

"I…" She swallowed. "It was my fault. She would've been fine."

"No," the Doctor murmured into her hair. "Not your fault. The Angels."

"They used me." Eyes closed. One tear, slipping lose.

"I know."

A second sob; a third. "They used you against me."

His eyes closed too, now. "I know."

"They broke me." She was crying freely into the front of his shirt. "They used me, and I let them."

"_No." _He was suddenly impassioned. "No. You did _not _let them."

"How do you know?"

He pulled back and cupped her face between his palms. "Because," he started softly, dark eyes searching gold-flecked, "you are Rose Tyler." A smile, just a little one. "_My _Rose Tyler. My Bad Wolf." She smiled at that. He went on; encouraged. "And there is no way that you would ever _let _anybody use you like that."

A flicker of doubt, of grief, still clung to her features.

"_Anybody," _he reasserted.

She smiled fully, inexplicably convinced. He did that to her sometimes. "I guess so."

He chewed his lip lightly and his hands dropped to her hips, fingers cool through her clothes. "Well…"

Worry. "Doctor?"

"Well, you'd probably let _me _use you," he pondered out loud, "considering just how amazing I am…"

She thwacked him on the arm, hard. "Y'know, it's _good _I'm around," she told him, with a whack to his other arm. " 'Cause otherwise your head would be so big it'd _explode._"

He yelped as she hit him again and rubbed his arm. "That is not true!"

_Thwack. _"_So_ is."

"Fine. Maybe," he acquiesced. He rubbed at his arms, a mock-sullen look on his face. "What is it with you Tyler women and _slapping _me?!"

Her face fell, just a little. She crossed her arms across her stomach and looked up at him. "Can we go away?" she asked. Her voice was tiny, soft. Like a child's. "_Far _away from Earth. And Mum."

"Rose…"

"Please, Doctor." Their gazes met. "I need to get away from her. To keep her safe."

He nodded wordlessly. Two steps took him to the console. Three buttons and a switch later, the TARDIS juddered sharply, sending Rose bouncing into the railing. She winced, grabbed her side, and glared at the suitably-sheepish Doctor, poised at the controls. "What was that?" she yelped.

"The TARDIS—"

Her hands went to her hips as she interrupted. "Don't you dare blame her!" Rose ordered. "She is not at fault for your crappy driving—"

And further insults were cut off as the TARDIS shuddered again, almost reluctantly. Rose suddenly felt a wisp of something reluctant, almost _fearful _in her mind, but it faded instantly, and she brushed it away. _Nothing is going to go wrong any more, _she told herself firmly. _Not now. Not now that you have him. _

As if picking up on her thoughts, he looked up and flashed her a cheeky grin.

She rolled her eyes.

He stood back from the console. "And we're here!" His gaze linked to hers. "A galaxy far, far away."

She smiled.

---------

They stepped out of the TARDIS together, close together. The Doctor turned back to the panelled blue box, and Rose felt that quiver again in her mind. "I wonder what's wrong with her," he mused, lightly stroking the door panel. "She's sort of…"

_Queasy? _

"… queasy," he completed. "Indigestion. Like she didn't want to land…" There was a thoughtful look in his eyes.

Rose put on her 'worried' face. "If you think there's gonna be trouble, we could always get back inside and go somewhere else…"

_Yeah. Sure. _

They burst out laughing.

He flashed her a grin, one of _her _grins, the ones he never showed anyone else, and turned to study their surrounding. "I think…" he ventured, "we've landed inside a cupboard." Another glance; another devastating smile. "Here we go." And he cracked the door open, and they stepped out, into another adventure.

Together.

--end--


End file.
